The ad's text said the company needed a Vice President for Strategic Planning. To me, the ad conveyed a different message. It said that this company did not understand strategic planning. Reading the ad, I envisioned an organization with a CEO who is very busy doing things that may or may not really relate to the company's mission and wants someone to do the work necessary to create a big, complicated plan that includes all the latest buzz words. Experience tells me that whoever takes this job will find himself in an office with little support. In spite of a lot of platitudes, this person will find they are always number two on the priority list; behind everyone else. This person needs to keep their resume polished because when the company falls on hard times, they will be one of the first to go, hearing words like, "A luxury we just can't afford right now you see."

Why such a negative view you ask? After all, isn't it good that this company wants bring strategic planning into the C-suite? Yes, that's terrific. The problem is, by creating a separate office the company is missing the key point of strategic planning. It is the foundation upon which everything in the organization is based. A large company will probably have several vice presidents. There will be one for operations, marketing, R & D, and maybe human resources. All of these executives should be working toward goals to accomplish a mission that is laid out in the strategic plan. The strategic plan is not co-equal with the marketing plan, or the operations plan. It is the basis for those plans.

Well, if there shouldn't be an executive position for strategic planning, then who is responsible for it?

Each day we come into contact with many different people. We start with those with whom we live and before too many hours of the day have passed we have crossed paths with friends, co-workers, store clerks, etc. These people may or may not be regular fixtures and regardless of their status in our life-how well do we know the people with whom we regularly interact? If you are like many people, the answer will be not very well.

Why do we resist getting to know the people around us? It is because we have failed to get to know the most important person in our life-ourself. If we do not know who we are, how capable are we of connecting with those around us? Almost without exception, my coaching clients are in search of greater connection with the individuals in their lives, from their employees and co-workers to family, friends and community. People understand that if they want satisfaction in their work and life it is important to have healthy relationships with those with whom they interact and yet, so few people entertain the idea that until they know themselves they are not fully capable of developing meaningful connections.

Why do we resist getting to know ourselves? We keep from unearthing our true qualities because we fear that "who we really are" is not good enough, smart enough, talented enough, etc. The irony is that the exact opposite is true-each person is uniquely qualified to do something in the world no one else can do and each of us represents an important piece of the puzzle that makes our world work. Based on my 20 years experience there are three main hurdles that keep people from embarking on the path to self-understanding:

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In What I Didn't Learn in Business School, Justin Campbell, with a brand new MBA degree, is hired on by a business consulting firm and sent off to Chicago to help an old and established company decide what to do with a new technology they have accidentally discovered. It isn't a smooth ride as Justin finds there are nuances in the corporate world that aren't always taught in school.

Although this is one of the many business books available today, it is also one of the few written in this genre; the business text thinly disguised as a novel. There are probably so few business novels that clearly teach specific points because writing such a creation is difficult. Jay Barney and Trish Gorman Clifford have pulled it off well.

Justin, the protagonist, is a well educated and very naïve business school graduate. In fact, his naiveté is a bit obvious. Justin's gullibility is necessary though to provide the canvas on which the authors can illustrate the pitfalls of relying only on academic learning without considering the human element that is always involved in business situations. Justin, the intrepid hero of the story again and again approaches each situation as a school case study, missing the influence of the other character's motives. He does eventually come around, after some mentoring from the boss, and by the end of the story he…well I won't spoil the ending for you.

Barney and Clifford have added an element that is somewhat novel for a novel.

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This time the question is for you. I would like to know your thoughts on these two questions.

1. What are the biggest concerns you face in your business or organization?

2. What are the biggest concerns you have with employees?

Please send me your thoughts at comments@planleadexcel.com.

Geographers divide the planet's land mass into seven continents.

Antarctica is the only continent to have no countries.

Asia is the most populated continent with 3.879 billion people. (2007 estimate)

After Antarctica, Australia/Oceana, made up of Australia and the collection of islands to the north and west, is the least populated at 39 million. (2007 estimates)

Africa has the most countries at 53.

The countries of Turkey and Russia stradle the dividing line between Europe and Asia.

Some students are taught that North and South America are a single continent. Some experts combine Europe and Asia into a single continent called Eurasia.

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